I See Fire
by ICanHearItCallingMe
Summary: Briony Everdeen has always felt out-of-place in her family. She isn't as brave or strong as her older sister Katniss nor is she as calm and composed as her younger sister Prim. But she is forced to figure out who she is when District 12 is destroyed after the Quarter Quell and her family is forced to take refuge.
1. Chapter 1

I sat there in front of the screen blinking rapidly and breathing slowly at the black screen. Katniss, what they hell did you just do? I wasn't sure what was worse: watching my sister on the screen and fearing for her death or not being able to see a single thing and fearing for her death. I knew that she was hiding something from us when she game back—beside just the horror of the games. Things had gotten worse after her meeting with President Snow. I wasn't sure exactly what he had over her head, but I was intuitive enough to know that something was amiss. Not only that, but this was the second time around I had to watch her in those blasted games being broadcasted for all of Panem to see. It was pure torture and yet there was a very thin silver lining: Katniss wasn't going to go down without a fight. While I was only eighteen months younger than Katniss, I knew that she was the only one of us Everdeen sisters that could win the games. I seemed painfully dull and ordinary compared to my sisters. Maybe it was just the middle child thing—but Katniss had her bravery and Prim her empathy and medical skills. The only thing I could do was write decently—I was probably a disappointment to the Everdeen name.

When I would later try to recall what happened, my memory drew a blank from the disruption of the broadcast until the time Gale Hawthorne rushed into our house. Gale looked so strong as serious as he frantically began to explain of how the Peacemakers pulled out from the area. District 12 was going to be burned down—just as the Capital had done to District 13. I froze as Prim rushed to my mother's side as she tried to process what was happening. Gale didn't make eye contact with me. I knew that he had feelings for my older sister. Hell, who wouldn't have feelings for Katniss? I wasn't exactly sure what the nature of their relationship was; but I knew better than to ever think of Gale in that way. I promised myself a long time ago that I wouldn't do that—I didn't want to make things awkward for my sister.

Mother tried to gather a few things, but Gale said that we didn't have time. We had to get out. We'd already wasted too much time. We needed to run. Get past the electric fence and run. Prim grabbed my hand which seemed to unfreeze me. Hand in hand we ran. Ran toward the forest I had been on the outskirts of many times. It was the place I went to write and think—but I couldn't let anyone know. We got past the fence as I could hear Gale shouting directions for those running and fleeing District 12. I had no idea where we were going—but I could sense the urgency surging through us. Overhead a low rumbling could be heard—my heart began to thud.

I looked up—which was a mistake because it distracted me from running around obstacles. I tripped over a fallen tree branch onto the hard ground. I heard something snap—at first I thought it must be the tree branch until I felt the pain shooting up my leg. I screamed which caused Prim to stop and turn back toward me. She started running in my direction when out of nowhere Gale appeared and pushed her toward the rest of the people running. Prim looked hesitant to listen to him—but he told her that there was nothing she could do to help me. For a moment I began to panic. Was he going to leave me? I thought he was going to as he looked toward those fleeing further into the woods—but he was just waiting for Prim to keep going. He ran toward me and knelt on the forest floor as Prim kept running toward my mother—both of them kept looking back at me. I held my ankle in my hands—putting pressure on it as I looked up to his steel eyes.

"I—I think it's broken," I said through gritted teeth, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill. "What are we gonna do? I can't walk."

Gale took one look at it before he looked up at the pain in my eyes. Without saying anything he swooped me up in his arms and told me to hold on. Everything seemed to be happening so fast as I wrapped my arms around his neck and hung on tightly. I could feel his arms holding me tightly and despite the dire situation I actually felt somewhat safe in his strong arms. Maybe I was just euphoric from the adrenaline running through me—but for a moment, despite how terrible things were, I found myself enjoying this. But soon, the pain began to grow to the point that I couldn't handle it. I rested my head against the crook of Gale's neck as he continued to carry me through the forest. I felt pathetic. I just wanted to give up and let sleep take over. Gale must have noticed what I was doing because he began to talk to me. Really talk to me—probably more than we've ever actually talked to each other.

"Bri—Briony," Gale whispered.

"What?" I asked drowsily.

"Stay with me."

"I'm so tired."

"We're almost there."

"You're a terrible liar."

"C'mon, Bri—just stay awake."

"Gale—"

"Tell me a story—what've you been writing about?"

"How do you know about that?"

"I've known you for years. We're not exactly strangers."

"But we're not exactly friends."

"I know things about you."

"Like what?"

"That when Katnip and I would go out hunting—you'd follow behind us and write in the forest, but you made sure to leave before we got back."

"Why didn't you ever say anything?"

"Dunno. Didn't want to embarrass you, I guess. So are you gonna tell me or not?"

"You wouldn't like it."

"Why don't you let me decide that for myself."

"I—I—"

I didn't get a chance to respond. Instead, I slowly slipped into a state of unconsciousness from the overwhelming pain. Why couldn't I have been stronger like Katniss? Or calmer in distress like Prim? Why did I have to be so pathetic? The last thing I heard was Gale swearing underneath his breath before everything went black.


	2. Chapter 2

When I finally awoke from all the shock, I was resting on a pile of leaves. The sounds of a river running near us echoed through the murmurs of the people. For a moment, my senses couldn't process where I was or why I was there. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I instantly shot up into a sitting position, but Prim and my mother were beside me and pushed me back down. I was about to scream when my mother wrapped her hand around my mouth. She whispered in my ear for me to be quiet—that we weren't out of the woods yet, so to speak. I nodded my head in agreement as Prim handed me a flat stone with something smashed all over it. She told me that it would help relieve the pain a bit, but there wasn't really much she could do for my ankle—which was indeed broken. I looked down at my ankle and saw that there were two branches tied together with a belt to brace my leg before I ate whatever Prim had ground up for me. Whatever it was, it didn't taste good. I slowly sat back up, reaching for some water Prim or mother had gathered.

Whispers spread throughout the camp as the faint sounds of screams and explosions could be heard in the background. I choked at the thought that _that_ could have been us. But it wasn't. Because Gale had made it to them. My eyes began to search for him. Where was he? The last thing I remembered was fainting in his arms. I breathed a slight sigh of relief when I saw him sitting with his family, holding his little sister, Posy, on his lap. Gale must have caught sight of me because he looked over at me and nodded his head. I blushed. I wasn't sure why I blushed. Maybe because I was pathetic enough to faint in his arms. Or maybe it was because I was embarrassed that for a moment there, I liked being in his arms. I brushed my matted hair behind my ear and turned away. Prim began prattling on about how Gale, despite carrying me like a dead deer carcass, managed to lead the group to this spot; but they were only staying until people had rested for a moment and gotten some food. Then they were to keep going until it got dark. They needed to put as much distance between them and District 12 as possible.

When I was calmer and more relaxed, I asked Prim to help me to my feet. She suggested that I put my swollen ankle in the cool river to keep the swelling down. I only made it a step before I fell to the forest floor. I angrily threw the leaves I landed in. I couldn't even take a few steps—which angered me. I was only going to be a thorn in the side for the survivors. But Prim remained calm. She helped me to my feet again and wrapped one of my arms around her shoulder. My mother came to my other side and did the same. It was very slow and seemingly endless walk to the river. I wasn't so sure that I was going to be able to keep going with the rest of them. They should probably just leave me here. I said as much to mother and Prim, but they wouldn't hear any of it. Instead, they just made sure I was comfortable by the river's edge before I dipped my foot into the cool, refreshing water. I shivered for a moment, before I just sat there—soaking everything in. Katniss was probably dead, my home destroyed, and here I was injured. To say that I was wallowing in self-pity probably would have been an understatement. Prim tried to cheer me up by hugging me from behind. I patted her hands that were wrapped around me.

"How's the ankle?" a voice asked from behind.

I turned around to find Gale, holding Posy approaching us.

"It's broken," Prim responded. "She's not going to be able to walk for a while. She said that we should just leave her here."

"Prim," I hissed.

"I'm not leaving anyone else behind," Gale muttered.

"I'll just slow down—"

"I won't do it, Bri. We've lost enough good people today."

His last comment kind of struck me. Did he feel responsible for not getting more people out? But Gale didn't say any more on the matter. Instead, he walked Posy closer to the rivers' edge. I looked around at the group we had weaving in and out of the trees. There had to me several hundred of us. Enough of us to tell our story—so that District 12 could still live on in a sense. But yet, I could sense a feeling of guilt through Gale. I couldn't quite read him the way Katniss could. The thought of my older sister caused my throat to begin grow hard to swallow and my eyes start to water. Was my sister dead? Would she be counted as another loss in those damn Hunger Games? I missed her. Then again—she hadn't been the sister I missed in quite some time. Those games changed her. I wrapped my arms tightly around myself, almost as if I were hugging myself. I looked up for a moment and watched as Posy slipped on a rock. Prim immediately rushed to the younger girl's aid—although it probably wasn't necessary. This left me with my mother who had walked back over to me.

"We need to be strong. It's what Katniss wanted," my mother said.

"Do you think she's—" I started.

"Not right now with Prim so close, Bri."

"She's not as naïve as you think. She knows-"

"Briony, please."

"Fine."

My mother began to run her fingers through my tangled hair. At first as she hit each snarl, I cringed—but eventually it began to feel nice. It almost relaxed me but it reminded me of Katniss. My mother wasn't the one who usually did this with me. It had always been Katniss. Katniss, Prim, and I used to sit in a row on a bed, Katniss braiding my hair and I would try Prim's hair, but I'd usually mess up and Katniss would have to fix it. I sighed. My mother braided my hair like a crown at the roots of my hair before she pulled it back into a high ponytail—tying it something from the forest floor. She then turned my face toward her. I could tell that she was thinking of Katniss looking at me. When we were little people were always mistaking us for each other—both of us having dark hair and icy eyes. I could tell that she was trying to fight back the tears.

"Not in front of Prim," I whispered.

"I know," my mother whispered back.

Prim walked back holding Posy's hand as Gale came up behind them.

"What now?" my mother asked.

"We keep going. We need to put more distance between us while there's still daylight. If you could start rounding people up," Gale responded.

"Of course."

"Bri, I'll be right back to get you. I just want to make sure Posy gets back by my mother."

"Gale, you don't have to—"I started.

"I forgot you're just as stubborn as Katniss."

"I'm not stubborn."

Gale gave me a pointed look as I folded my arms across my chest.

"Like I said, I'll be right back."

I watched as my mother and Prim began to gather the troops, so to speak, while I pulled my foot from the water. It was several minute before he came back. Gale held out his hand to help me to my feet before he suddenly turned his back to me and bent over a little. For a moment I was confused.

"Up," Gale said.

I grasped Gale's shoulders with my hands before I practically fell onto his back. He grunted for a moment before he stood up straight and adjusted me on his back, shifting my weight to make it easier to carry me.

"I'm not an invalid, you know," I retorted.

"Damnit, Bri. I made a promise to your sister and I'm not going back on it now because you're grumpy."

"So that's why you're helping me. For Katniss? And I'm not grumpy."

"And because you need my help."

Gale completely ignored my not grumpy comment. Maybe he was a little right about that—I mean, with my ankle and all; but I wasn't going to just give in to him that easily. With me on his back, Gale led the refugees through the forest. One thing I forgot about Gale was that he was just as stubborn as me and Katniss. I knew that he was already dealing with enough on his plate—so I refrained from going any farther. So instead, I made myself comfortable, resting my chin on the crook of his neck with my arms wrapped tightly around him. For a moment, I thought I saw his face flush at my touch but maybe I was just making it up. Either way—we had a long way to go and no end in sight.


	3. Chapter 3

When the sun began to set we stopped to sleep for the evening. Gale set me down near a tree where my mother and sister sat. My mother thanked Gale for his kindness to our family and he just silently nodded his head before going to his own family. He always seemed so sure of himself. Prim left for a few minutes to go gather food—nothing more than a few berries and roots. It wasn't the most filling thing I had eaten, but I remembered eating less before Katniss had been summoned into the Hunger Games. I wanted nothing more than to go to sleep, but to my surprise Prim had brought several of the little children in our group over to hear a story before bed. I was surprised when Posy Hawthorne crawled right into my lap and innocently asked me for a story while her brothers gathered around. I sighed as Prim and my mother looked at me with a smile. I might not have any paper on me to tell a story—but I suppose simply making one up would have to do.

"There were once three little ducks who loved to swim in a pond. These ducks were the closest of friends—some might even call them sisters. The oldest little duck was strong and brave and protected the little ducks from anything that tried to hurt them. The youngest little duck was kind and good—she was always patient and knew how to take care of the little ducks. The middle little duck was something of a misfit. She was neither as strong nor brave nor patient as the other little ducks, but the other little ducks loved her just the same. One day the oldest little duck had to leave to protect the other little ducks. The other little ducks were sad and scared to see her go, but they knew that they had to keep living—even if it meant living without the oldest little duck. The two littlest ducks clung tightly to each other as they waited for the oldest little duck to return to them safely. Word spread that the oldest little duck went into battle with a red fox—and the littlest ducks were scared. But that oldest little duck managed to outsmart that cunning fox—and do you know what? The oldest little duck managed to come back home to the other little ducks. She was changed, but one thing that didn't change was her love for the other little ducks. The littlest ducks were so happy to see the oldest little duck that they threw a party. And they lived happily ever after swimming in their pond, laughing and enjoying things that little ducks enjoyed."

I knew it definitely wasn't my best work—but it was all that I could come up with on such short notice. I looked around at the few children that sat before me—they looked happy with the story. So much so—that they were asking for another story. Nothing even happened in the story. There really wasn't a plot—it was just my random ramblings. I shook my head and looked at Posy who had fallen asleep resting against me. Hazelle, Gale and Posy's mother, chuckled at the sight. She patted my face before she reached down and picked her daughter out of my arms. I smiled up at her before she walked away with Gale's younger siblings. My mother came up and fussed over my ankle—saying that she wished there was more she could do for me. I gritted my teeth telling her that it was fine—when I think she knew that it really wasn't. To distract myself from my pain, I forced myself to slow my breathing so that I would fall asleep. Only, it seemed to take forever for me to fall asleep. Any little snap of a twig or sound of an animal scurrying seemed to keep me awake. I wasn't sure how long it took me, but I finally fell asleep. But it seemed like I was only asleep for five minutes before I was being shaken awake.

"Bri—"

I looked around frantically to see Gale leaning in front of me. Was something wrong? Had the Capital found us? Were we about to die? I backed-up a bit as he watched me and tried to keep me quiet, telling me that we were safe. I exhaled loudly.

"What the hell," I hissed. "You scared me half to death."

"Sorry. I wanted to show you something," Gale whispered.

"It couldn't wait until morning?"

"No, they'd be gone by then."

"What would be gone?"

"Do you wanna come or not?"

"Seeing as I can't walk—that's up to you."

Gale smirked a bit before he reached down and picked me up as if I were nothing more than a child. His time in the mine had definitely made him stronger. I was surprised that neither my mother nor Prim awoke as Gale carried me for a bit. We came to a stop as we were perched on top of a rock formation. He pointed for me to look out into the trees. I gasped when I saw the fireflies shining in and out through the trees. When I was little my father used to take me out to catch them. It was one of the only memories I had of my father. He would catch them in a jar and I would get to keep it for a while, before I released it back into the outside world.

"Fireflies," I said breathlessly. "What—how—"

"I used to watch you run around and try to catch them," Gale said. "Of course Katniss and I always made fun of you behind your back."

"Of course you did."

"I—I just thought that after the day you've had you could use a little cheering up."

"Really?"

"Sorry for trying to be nice. Just forget I even tried."

"Gale."

"What?"

"Thank you, I mean it."

"You're welcome."

We sat there for several minutes in silence just watching the fireflies. I shivered for a moment from the cool night's air and unintentionally leaned a little closer to Gale. If he minded, he didn't say anything. He just sat there solid as a stone. I wasn't sure how long we sat there watching the fireflies—but things felt comfortable. I knew that it was rare to find someone you didn't feel like you had to talk to all the time. To feel comfortable in the silence. Funny how over the years I never would have imagined that I could feel this way with my sister's best friend, but I knew that it wouldn't be anything more than this. I knew he was in love with my sister. I couldn't let it be anything more—because he was in love with my sister. But it was funny how in a matter of a few hours everything you once knew could change.

**A/N:**** Thanks so much to those of you who are reading and reviewing! It means a lot to me! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

We had been wondering in the woods for several days and my ankle still wasn't any better. Well, I still couldn't walk on it and for some reason, Gale seemed to make sure that he was the one to look after me. I knew that he said it was because of Katniss, but part of me wanted his reason to be me. I had plenty of time to overthink things. The fact that he knew the little things about me had to mean something, right? But then I also knew him to be in love with my sister—who was probably dead now. I wasn't sure how I felt about being second best—but then again, I was probably getting too far ahead of myself. Besides, I didn't even know that I was going to survive in these woods for long.

From my spot on Gale's back, I looked around and noticed the faces surrounding us. They looked tired, worn-out, and sad. Families had been separated in the attack. I was lucky that my mother and Prim were still with me. As I scanned the people, I noticed familiar faces that were missing. Katniss' closest girl friend, Madge, was nowhere in my line of view of the crowd. The girl had been a bit naïve about our situation, but she had proved to be a good friend. I felt my heart feeling heavy at the thought of all the people who were gone. I unintentionally gripped Gale tighter, reminding myself that not all was lost—that some part of what would be my former life managed to make it. I sighed as I looked up toward the sky and the blinding sun. For a second I thought I saw something rather large pass by the sun.

"Gale, did you see that?" I asked.

"See what?" Gale responded.

"I just must be seeing things, never mind."

For a few minutes we seemed to go on as normal before aircrafts began to hover over us. Gale shouted for everyone to run and split up. If we weren't all together, they couldn't catch us all. The Capitol had found us. I held onto Gale as he began to run faster and faster. He weaved and out in between the trees—not giving them a straight path to us. Suddenly, he stopped. I looked up to see a craft in front of us. My heart began to race quickly. I don't know why I did it. Well—actually, I know exactly why I did it. I didn't want to die never having been kissed and Gale just happened to be right there. It was convenience—not my evolving opinion of him. I quickly brushed my lips against his and the confusion in his eyes was clearly evident. I had to come up with some sort of lie to tell him. I fumbled before I finally had a sufficient answer for him.

"Just in case we die and I don't get to say thank you."

Gale appeared to ponder what I said for a second before he started running again.

"You can thank me later because we're not dying."

Suddenly a voice began to call out from above. It told us to stop where we were and that if we cooperated, we wouldn't be harmed. Gale stopped as the crowd began to move closer toward us. I examined the aircraft a little more—what was suspicious is that they didn't have any flashy markings of the Capitol. Unless, they had suddenly decided to go incognito—which was highly unlikely. I told Gale my suspicions to which he nodded his head. The group, which was dressed in grey jumpsuits, walked toward us—surrounding us. I began to shake I was so scared. Then suddenly a voice began to echo through the woods.

"District 12 refugees, we mean you no harm. We apologize if our presence startled you. We have more in common than you realize. We are the remaining members of District 13."

"I thought they were destroyed," I whispered.

"Maybe some survived like us," Gale whispered back.

"We wish to give you a place to take refuge—a place to be safe, a place with food, water, all necessary items needed to survive. We only ask one thing in return: We ask that you turn your allegiance from President Snow and toward the rebellion to overthrow the Capitol under the leadership of Alma Coin."

Thoughts of my sister flashed through my head. I hated the Capitol for what they did to her—for what they made her become—for taking away the sister I had known and loved.

"Remember, President Snow is the one who ordered your district to be fire-bombed. Your lost loved one's blood is on his hands."

Gale looked back at me and I nodded. Without even thinking about asking my mother or sister, I knew that I wanted to be a part of this. I wanted to avenge Katniss. We slowly moved into a line to prove our allegiance by stepping onto the aircraft. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw my mother and Prim a little way ahead of us in line. When Gale and I reached the aircraft, one of the District 13 guys said that each person needed to prove their allegiance by walking onto the aircraft. Gale began to tell the guy that my ankle was broken in a fall—but I interrupted him. He looked at me with concern, but I told him that this was something that I needed to do. He reluctantly helped me off his back. I took one step and fell flat on my face. Gale reached down and pulled me to my feet. He must've understood what I was trying to do because instead of carrying me, he wrapped his arm around my waist and brought my arm to his shoulder. Together, with most of my weight leaning upon Gale, we crossed past them and onto the aircraft. Gale helped me find a seat on the aircraft near our families. I wasn't sure why he did it, but he wrapped an arm around me and I leaned my head against his shoulder as the aircraft took us to an unknown location.

**A/N: Thanks so much to all of you who have favorited/followed/read/reviewed my story! I really am thankful for it! Love reading your reviews. :)**


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